About us
Canolfan Gymunedol Brynaman Community Centre is gearing up for the future, after months of renovation in adverse weather conditions, our new building has been completed.
We have secured funding to increase and modernise our existing facilities, enabling us to expand our service to the public and private sector, as well as the local community as a whole.
We now use the Black Mountain Centre as a name to promote use as a visitors centre. The name depicts the fantastic scenery around us. At heart we are still a Community Centre and the new facilities at the Centre are in furtherance of the Charities aims and objectives to provide a sustainable future for the community activities. Without these new facilities to bring in and income, the Centre would not have a future. In the mean time whilst we develop the business facilities the Lottery have awarded us a grant for community activities for the next three years. Please see below.
The new extension houses the Black Mountain Restaurant - a 50 seat eatery which is now open for Sunday Lunch as well as private events. We hope to extend opening hours in the next year. We also have state of the art conference facilities, as well as rooms for hire.
It is an exciting time for the village of Brynaman and the surrounding area, and we are keen to develop sustainable and economic growth, through Tourism , as well as being a centre of excellence for education and business.
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AN award of nearly £240,000, announced today by the Big Lottery Fund, will help the centre to fund a develop a vast programme of activities and services to improve the health of the community, reduce isolation and re-engage individuals who face barriers to learning and employment.
The Black Mountain Centre in Brynaman, Carmarthenshire, has been awarded with £238,248 under the Big Lottery Fund’s (BIG) People and Places programme, which aims to bring people together to make communities stronger and to improve rural and urban environments.
Nestling at the foot of the Black Mountain near the Brecon Beacons National Park, the Black Mountain Centre is housed at the Old Infant’s School in the heart of Brynaman. The centre plays a key role in community life in the village and was set up to promote health, education and recreation for the inhabitants and surrounding area. Having undergone an extensive £800,000 renovation and refurbishment project, the centre now offers a wealth of facilities such as a library, doctors’ surgery, a computer suite, several meeting rooms and a community Café.
The money from BIG will help the project to run A Brighter Future Phase 5 project and gain maximum use of these facilities for the benefit of people who live in the Upper Amman Valley community. The money will be spent on employing a Development officer and an Administrator to develop a programme of activities to meet the needs of the community identified through a consultation.
Gearing up for the future, activities and services on offer will include a luncheon club for older people, a credit union branch, healthy living activities including nutrition classes, cooking on a budget and fitness classes, adult education, advice surgeries and back to work activities including training (such as IT and food hygiene), volunteering opportunities and practical workshops (such as CV writing and interview skills). A time banking scheme will be set up to reward those who volunteer at the centre. To overcome isolation, the development officer will also be responsible for establishing community transport to and from the centre.
Delighted with the award, the Project Manager at the Black Mountain Centre, said: “The main issues we have in the community are poor health, poor transport links, isolation, high unemployment and low skills. This project will revitalise the community through improving access to advice and advocacy services, enabling people to take part in designing joined up services for their community and enabling people to become more confident and gain practical skills. The money will enable us to enhance our facilities by increasing the range of services and activities on offer for the local community.”
Highlighting the importance of the People and Places programme, Big Lottery Fund Wales Committee Member and Chair of the People and Places Committee, Janet Reed, said: “Programmes like People and Places are making a difference to the lives of so many people in communities across Wales. It delivers on our promise to use Lottery funding to regenerate and revitalise communities, tackle disadvantage head on and leave a lasting legacy. I’m sure this project will have a positive impact on the lives of many people in the community and will continue to do so for years to come."
The £66 million People and Places programme awards grants of between £5,001 and £1 million for a broad range of community projects. For further information about the People and Places programme and how you can apply for funding, please visit www.biglotteryfund.org.uk and use the ‘Wales’ specific search facility